Lyft and Baidu Start Supervised Robotaxi Tests in London

London residents may soon see Baidu’s Apollo Go RT6 vehicles on streets in the Brent borough as part of supervised trials that mark the latest step in efforts to introduce paid autonomous rides in a major European capital. The tests began with human safety operators aboard, and passenger bookings through the Freenow by Lyft app are scheduled to open to the public in 2027 if regulators approve. Lyft formed the partnership with Baidu last year to place thousands of the vehicles across Europe, and the 2025 purchase of Freenow for roughly 197 million dollars gave Lyft an existing network of licensed drivers and vehicles in the UK and Germany. Dozens of the RT6 vehicles will operate initially in Brent while the companies coordinate with Transport for London and the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles. The UK government is drafting autonomous-vehicle rules and opened applications in May for a pilot program that permits supervised testing under official oversight. Waymo has already placed Jaguar I-Pace vehicles on London roads with safety drivers, and Uber has opened an interest list for trials it plans with Wayve later this year. When commercial service starts, Freenow by Lyft intends to run a hybrid fleet in which robotaxis share rides with human-driven taxis and private-hire cars. Thomas Zimmermann, chief executive of Freenow by Lyft, said the priority is ensuring autonomous technology supports professional drivers. The exact start date remains tied to regulatory clearance, and no independent verification of vehicle performance or passenger demand has been released.